Rahm and the Obamas still besties, despite recent reports
Amanda Warren/Flickr
Rahm's the one on the right, we think.
Well, this is awkward. It’s been only mere days since he pissed off everybody everywhere by doubling back on an agreement with the Chicago Public Library system—but lo and behold, Mayor Rahm Emanuel has managed to end up in a cringe-worthy situation once again.
The Obamas, a new book by New York Times reporter Jodi Kantor, reports that first lady Michelle Obama had a “distant, awkward” relationship with Emanuel during his tenure as White House chief of staff. But according to Emanuel, the Sun-Times reports, he and the Obamas are pretty much BFFs.
Cue the collective, nationwide shudder of second-hand embarrassment.
The book, an up-close-and-personal portrait of the first couple, characterizes the typical Michelle Obama-Rahm Emanuel interaction as uncomfortable and strained and suggests that Michelle had doubts about Emanuel’s appointment as chief of staff. According to Kantor, Michelle believed Emanuel’s politics clashed with her husband’s, and the author contends that the first lady’s office and daily activities were isolated from the sphere of other White House goings-on under Emanuel.
But Emanuel insisted Sunday that he has a “great relationship with the president and First Lady.” According to the Sun-Times, Emanuel said he and his wife, Amy, were recently with the President and first lady at a private holiday party. “I talked to the president just yesterday,” Emanuel added.
See? They’re still tight, guys! Everything’s chill, right Barack? ... Right?
